Liner set tool



B. G. HARMON 2,913,052

LINERsE'rTooL 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 Nov. 17, 1959 Filed July 5, 1956- NOV.17, '1959 B, Q HARMQN 2,913,052

' LINER SET Toor.

Filed I uly 5, 1956 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 @g4 535' @Q6 j States Patent2,913,052 LINER SET TooL lill G. Harmon, Carini, Ill., assignor toEngineered Gronting Service, Evansville, Ind., a partnership ApplicationJuly s, 1956, serial No. l596,111 4 claims. (c1. y16s- 144) The presentinvention relates to the general ield of oil well equipment. Morespecifically the invention contemplates a tool for setting a liner in awell. The invention is particularly useful in setting a liner in anextension of a hole in which the casing has already been set.

Quite often after an oil eld has been drilled in and produced,additional geological information is obtained which makes it desirableto drill deeper, through existing wells, to a secondary oil bearingstrata. To complete the well, a secondary casing, known as a liner, mustbe cemented into the secondary drilling. To deliver the cement into thearea between the walls of the secondary drilling and the liner,production or other tubing is usually connected to a shoe at the bottomof the liner.

After the cernenting job has been completed, it then becomes necessaryto withdraw the production tubing from the well and drill out the shoebefore producing. Several techniques have been developed for separatingthe production tubing from the shoe. Some involve hooks which arejiggled loose. Others use trick couplers which are backed oi to loosen.Almost invariably these various techniques and mechanisms haveoperational difficulties when even.the most skilled 'and experiencedoperators are employed.

l The general object of the present invention is to provide an oil-Wellliner tool which is simple to operate and insures a complete release.

A more detailed object of the invention is to furnish a wellliner settool which is controlled and released by hydraulic pressure andconsequently subject to accurate control from the well head.

Still another object of the invention is to provide a well liner settoolwhich is inexpensive to construct from standard shapes and-sizes ofmaterials.

Further objects and advantages of the present invention will becomeapparent as the following description of. an illustrative embodimentproceeds taken in conjunction with vthe descriptive drawings in which:

Figure l illustratesin partial broken section the assembled setting toolemployed with the liner in the bottom of an extension of'an existing oilwell.

Fig. 2 is alongitudinal sectional view in enlarged scale of the. lowerportion of the liner set tool shown in Fig. l illustrating the iirstphase of its operation.

Fig. 3 shows the same tool as illustrated in Fig. 2 but after the yportshave been opened for operation.

Fig. 4 is an enlarged partial section of the lower portion of the linerset tool illustrating the tension sleeve severance at the initial stageof release.

' Fig. 5 is an enlarged partial section of the lower portion of theliner set tool showing the cementing phase taking place.

Fig. 6 is a partial sectional view in reduced scale of the elementsshown in Fig. 4 illustrating the iinal ushing operation after the linerhas been cemented in place.

Fig. 7`is a transverse sectional view taken through the tension sleeveportion of the liner set tool along section line 7-7 of Fig. 2.

' terminating at the bottom portion 16 of the well.

sa *ce The heart of the present invention is the use of hydraulicpressure to accomplish all phases ofthe liner set tool operation, `andparticularlyto accomplish its release. In Vessencethe invention proceedsfrom the discovery that av tension member, calculated to part atpreselected hydraulic pressures,` may be employed to accomplish therelease of the tool in setting the liner.

Although the following`v description relates to a secondary drillingoperation, and setting a liner after such a drilling, thegmechanism maybe employed inrsetting a liner Whenever desired. Accordingly theinvention contemplates settingaliner and is not intended to be limitedto the specific operation shown in the drawings and described inydetail.

` Referringnow to Fig. 1, it will be seen that the casing 10 of theoriginal well has been` set in cement 11 liush up against theearthenside Wall 1,2 of the drilling. The secondary bore 14eXtends downto the pay zone area 15 When it is appreciated'that the secondary casingor liner 18 may-be Vset at any depth below the surface, it will beappreciated'thatthe problem of orienting and controlling theliner 18 forcementing into the hole 14 is a diicult one.

After the secondary hole 14 has been drilled, a concrete shoe 1,9 isloweredto the bottom of the well cornmunicating to the well head bymeans of a string of production tubing 2.0. The` invention resides inthe structure employed, to coupleand uncouple the shoe 19 with thestring of production tubing 20. Y

Referring-howto Figs. 2 and 3, it will be seen thatthe concrete shoe 19is encased in a sleeve 2x1 having a plu-r rality of lands 22 and grooves24'which firmly anchor the concrete to the sleeve 21. The upper portion2S of the sleeve 21 s threaded'and threadedly engages `the lower portion26 of the liner 18. In this manner the depth to which the liner 18kpenetrates the hole 14 will be largely a function of the depth to whichthe shoe 19 is permitted to descend.

To couple the shoe 19 with the production tubing 20, a threaded ring 28`is secured in the upper portion 25 of the shoe sleeve 21. The internalportion 29 of the threaded ring 28 is threaded toreceive the tensionsleeve 30. The tension sleeve 30is`thread'ed at its lower end 31 fora'threaded engagement with Athe ring 28 thereby coupling the tensionsleeve 30with the shoe 19. At its upper end 32 the tension sleeve issimilarly threaded to fit a standard sleeve.typethreadedcoupling 34.

Itrwill be appreciated that if the tension sleeve 30 is severed at itsnarrow neck portion 35, the entireupper assembly including theproduction tubing 20 may be withdrawn from the inner portion of theliner 18 leaving the shoe 19 andits related elements in place.

A by-pass valve assemblyy 36 is provided with the lower threaded portion38. to threadedly engage the coupling sleeve 34. 'I'he valve assembly 36contains a hollow sliding sleeve 39 which is secured in place by meansofshear pins 40 in such amanner that the by-pass sub-'ports 41 arecovered.- The sleeve Avalve39.hasfa pair of -0rings 42 at its upperandlowerr portion to'` seal o circulation around itsperiphery. The.fOrings 42-hold the sliding Asleevein place. until the ball 51 isdroppedand the pressure raised within thestring to open the bypasssub-ports 41 as Willbe described hereinafter. Y Y

The upper portion of the valve assembly 36 is .threaded internally.toreceivean externally' threaded coupler 45 which in turn isconnectedto afsingle-acting packer as'- sembly.46. Thesinglelactingpacker cup 48serves :to preventdhe owof` uidp. upwardly through theannulus 4 9 dehned by the inner wal1of--the liner- 1'8 and-the'l outerportion ofthe valve assemblyY 36."

The remaining details of construction will be more fully f y n 2,913,052

, 3 e appreciated as the sequential operation of the tool is set forth.As pointed out above, the liner tool illustrated is employed in asecondary hole 14 drilled through a completed well havinga casing 10cemented in place. The entire liner assembly is then lowered down thewell'supported by the production tubing 20 and-lowered to apredetermined locationto a secondary drilling 14.` In the event that theoperation renders it undesirable to lower the shoe 19 directly on to thebottom of the well 16, a liner hanging tool 50 is .employed to fix theliner 18 to the existing casing 10 at a predetermined location. Theadvantageous use of the present tool will become quite apparent when itis appreciated that the liner hanging tool 50 is released by twistingthe liner 18. Such liner hangers are known in the art (see my copendingapplication Serial No. 614,100), and anyhanger tool which locks thecasing 10 and liner 18 to each other will suiice. The entire operationof cementing the liner in place, by employing the unique tool of theinvention, isV accomplished without any subsequentl twist of the liner18 after the liner set tool 50 has been engaged.

After the liner 18 has been oriented to its appropriate depth in thesecondary drilling 14, the by-pass valve actuating ball 51 is droppeddown the tubing Z0 until it sits on theupper shoulderSZ of the slidingvalve 39. At this point the pressure of the tiuid within the tubing israised to place a suiiicient load on the sliding valve to shear thesliding valve support pins 40. This action drops the lower shoulder 52of the sliding valve 39 on to the internal shoulder 54 of the valveassembly 36 as best illustrated in Fig. 3. This opens the by-pass ports41 to permit the uid passing down through the tubing to pass outwardlyinto the annulus 49 defined by the liner set tool periphery and theinternal wall 18. The shear pins 40, or their remains, then are forcedinto the bottom of the hole by the force of gravity augmented by theiiuid ow.

After the operator has assured himself that the tubing is sound bypressure testing at a predetermined testing pressure, the pressure isthen raised to approximate the predetermined parting pressure. Thispressure exerts a tensile force on the narrow neck 35 of the tensionsleeve 30 because the fluid passing through the by-pass ports 41 bearsdownwardly on the threaded ring 28 and upwardly on the packer element48. The neck 35 of the tension sleeve 30 is so proportioned that it willseparate as shown in Fig. 4. In order to insure that a completeseverance at the neck 3S is achieved, a stinger 55 extends from thebottom of the valve assembly 36 and traverses the narrow neck portion 35of the tension sleeve 30. The stinger 55 also serves to add rigidity tothe assembly. A pair of -rings 56 at the bottom of the stinger 55prevent any uid from passing downwardly into the shoe 19 until aftercomplete severance has been accomplished. Y

Although the cementing operation could be performed prior to severingthe tension sleeve 30, most operators prefer to release the liner priorto pumping the cement down the hole to cement the liner in place.Accordingly the operator will raise the string of tubing 20 in order toremove the stringer 55 from the lower portion of the tension sleeve 30and then pump a slurry of cement down the vtubing Z0. The cement thenflows 'down through the hollow central portion S7 of the shoe 19 andpasses outwardly through the lateral by-pass ports 58.and downwardlythrough the lower annulus 59 of the shoe 19. When the totalpredetermined charge of cement is in place around the liner, the ow ofuid may be reversed by pumping the fluid past the single acting packer48 and down through the annulus 49 on the outside of the string ofequipment. The fluid then ows, as shown in Fig. 6, up through thecentral portion of the stinger 55 and the tubing 20. It will be notedthat the check valve 61 in the shoe 19 serves to prevent any excessivepressure on the outside of the shoe 19 from backing cement uid upthrough the liner 18 as the flushing operation takes place.

4 The ball valve 61 sits in the seat portion 62 of the check valve ring64 in the bottom of the shoe assembly 19.

After the hole has been flushed to clean out the excess cement, thestring of production pipe along the associated valve assembly 36 isremoved from the well and the cement foundation 60 is allowed to set.Thereafter the shoe 19 is drilled out with an ordinary drilling tool andthe production operation completed. It will be appreciated that in orderto facilitate this final drilling out of the shoe 19, the shoe should beformed of a material which can be readily drilled such as concrete,plastic, aluminum and the like, and the various ttings within the shoeof soft materials such as brass and the like.

As pointed out above by using the set tool described, no rotation of theliner 18 takes place after it is lowered into the well. In addition,severance of the tension sleeve permits a clean and positive removal ofthe string of tubing and associated valve mechanism. The liner hanger 50may be employed in the event that it is not desired to lower the shoe tothe bottom of the hole. On the other hand, the shoe may be lowered tothe bottom of the yhole supporting the liner and associated equipmentuntil it is removed. Further, in view of the hydraulic pressures atvarious levels, various critical operations can be positively determinedby the employment of pressure gauges at the well head.

Although particular embodiments of the invention have been shown anddescribed in full here, there is no intention to thereby limit theinvention to the details of such embodiments. On the contrary, theintention is to cover all modifications, alternative embodiments, usagesand equivalents of the liner set tool as fall within the spirit andscope of the invention, specification, and appended claims.

I claim as my invention:

1. For use on a string of well tubing and associated liner, a liner settool comprising, in combination, a support, means on the support forattachment to the liner at the lower end of the liner, a tension sleeve,means on the lower end of the string 0f tubing for slidable sealedengagement with the tension sleeve, means onthe support for attachingthe tension sleeve within the liner thereby defining a tubing-linerannulus closed at its lower end, said tubing having a port therein,valve means on the tubing adjacent the port for selectively divertingthe fluid pressure within the tubing to the tubing-liner annulus, and apacker element within the tubing-liner annulus and above the valve meansoriented so that when the pressure is diverted into the tubing-linerannulus the packer element prevents upward flowrof the fluid therebytensioning the tension sleeve to its parting load.

2. A liner set tool for setting a liner having a hollow central borethrough which a string of tubing may be extended comprising, incombination, a liner support coupled to the liner at the lower endthereof, a tubular tension sleeve secured to the lower end of the stringof tubing and to the liner support and defining anannulus between itsouter surface and the inner surface of the liner, a tubular extension ofthe string of tubing, said extension having sealing means for a slidingsealed relationship with the tubular tension sleeve, a packer elementsealing the annulus defined by the outer portion of the string of tubingand inner bore of the liner against an upward uid flow, said tubinghaving port means therein below said packer element, and valve meansslidable on the string of tubing adjacent said port means for openingthe same thereby selectively diverting fluid pressure from within thetubing to the annulus defined by the liner and tubing in that portionbelow the packer element and above the support, the valve means beinglocated below the packer element, the tension sleeve being structurallyreduced so that increase in the pressure of the fluid diverted by thevalve means will cause the tensionV sleeve to part at the reducedportion thereby pmlitting the tubing to be withdrawn from the well.

3. A liner set tool of the character defined in claim 2 above, in whichthe valve means is characterized by an inner sliding sleeve within saidtubing having an annular shoulder at its upper end, the port means beingconstituted as by-pass ports, shear pins positioning the sleeve to coverthe ports, the shoulder in the sleeve being proportioned to engage aball dropped down the tubing thereby permitting hydraulic pressure toshear the pins and open the by-pass ports.

4. A liner set tool for setting a liner having a hollow central borethrough which a string of tubing is extended comprising, in combination,a liner shoe having a central conduit, means on the shoe for lockinglyengaging the liner, a tension sleeve secured to the shoe, means couplingthe tension sleeve with the string of tubing, a packer element sealingthe annulus defined by the outer portion of the string of tubing andinner bore of the liner, said tubing having a port therein below saidpacker element, valve means on the string of ltubing adjacent said portfor selectively diverting uid pressure from within the tubing to theannulus dened by the liner and tubing, a hollow stinger extendingdownwardly from the valve means into the tension sleeve, the tensionsleeve being structurally reduced so that increase in the pressure ofthe fluid diverted by the valve means will cause the tension sleeve topart at the reduced portion thereby permitting the tubing to bewithdrawn from the well leaving only the shoe and liner.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS1,842,107 Lytle Jan. 19, 1932 2,315,931 Burt et al. Apr. 6, 19432,436,525 ODonnell Feb. 24, 1948 2,621,742 Brown Dec. 16, 1952 2,653,666Baker Sept. 29, 1953

